Page 25 of Back Together Again

His silent one-shoulder shrug was no help to me at all. Again, the man was totally chill while I was about to jump out of my skin. The need to confess and apologize was ridiculous. Cortney hadn’t asked about anything besides how Mason’s shoulder was. How was it even possible to give someone the third degree without saying a word? From what I’d heard, he had a teenage stepson who was all kinds of trouble, so I supposed he’d gotten good at interrogations. I needed to get out of the room before I spilled my guts.

“I’m just going to go grab the heat pack.” With my head down, I scurried past Cortney and out of the training room. I couldn’t even look at him. But when I came back in, I wished I hadn’t left at all.

“Aurora was going to help me stretch it out. After the heat.” He emphasized his statement by rolling his shoulder.

I kept my face neutral and my focus fixed on the heat pack, hoping I wasn’t giving anything away. But no one called me by my formal name here. From day one, I’d introduced myself as Rory.

“It does make sense to bring a trainer with us on the away stretch. And you’re saying you’d like Rory to accompany us, right?” A smirk lifted Cortney’s lips, and I had to bite back a groan. “Or were you referring to someone else?”

“Nope. She’s perfect.”

My face flamed as I draped the hot pad over Mason’s shoulder.

“Perfect, huh?”

“Yup.” Mason lifted his chin unapologetically, and the ass didn’t so much as flinch when I pinched his side as I settled the pack. He couldn’t say things like that.

Rather than calling us out, Cortney, to my relief, moved on. “Okay, then. I’ll run it by Beckett. Don’t think he’ll care.”

“Yeah, where is the control freak? I’m surprised he’s not here.”

“Finn has T-ball.”

“Already training the next generation of Langfields, huh?” Mason shook his head and chuckled. “It makes sense for him to even things out, I guess, since half of his siblings play hockey.”

They did. Two of Beckett’s brothers played for the Bolts, and the third owned the team. When I graduated and was looking for a job, working with the Bolts had been my first choice. I’d been thrilled when a position opened up with them, and I’d nearly passed out from excitement when I got a call from the Langfields. I’d hid my disappointment when I discovered the Revs were hiring rather than the Bolts, because a chance to work with either team was a huge deal. But I’d always been a hockey girl. I’d grown up in Cali, but I’d been a Bolts fan my whole life. And Dad would have died if I’d found a job with any hockey team. Which was why I’d applied for a few more positions elsewhere, even after getting this job with the Revs.

But suddenly, as I studied Mason, the thought of leaving Boston didn’t sit well.

Cortney’s phone buzzed in his hand, and after a quick glance at it, he focused on me again. “Email me the full report on the shoulder, okay, Rory?” Then he was gone.

Once it was just the two of us again, I blew out a relieved breath. But one look at Mason, and I kind of wanted to throttle him. The smile on his face made it obvious he thought the whole thing was comical.

“I hate you,” I grumbled.

“Does that mean you’re not coming over tonight?”

Aurora didn’t, in fact, come over after the game. She said she didn’t have time since she had to pack for this stupid plane ride. How long could it take to shove shit into a bag? Especially since she wore the same thing every day—black pants and a polo with the Revs logo embroidered on it. Damn, did I love her ass in those pants, and the way her tits pulled on the buttons on the polo was perfection. And she looked great in blue. The image of her helped take away some of the frustration I felt over her absence last night.

But not all of it. And I’d done my best to convince her via whiney texts all evening. There was no reason she couldn’t pack a bag, then spend the night at my place.

But the woman refused. And now she was ignoring my last text message in favor of chatting with my teammate.

I glanced down the aisle at where she sat next to the team doctor. She also refused to sit near me. I couldn’t argue with that decision. If she was close, I’d want to touch her. I wouldn’t maul her on the plane or anything, but if she was next to me, I’d want to hold her hand.

And even that was taking it too far. I sighed. Her job, not mine, would be in jeopardy if we were caught, and that wasn’t okay. Nor did it seem fair. I would never ask her to give anything up to be with me. I wanted to make her life better, not be the reason she had to sacrifice. And the way she acted like a skittish rabbit anytime management was around would become an issue if it continued to happen.

But there was no easy fix. I could ask for a trade; my contract had a trade clause in it. But that would more than likely put us at least half a country apart, since I’d have no control over where they would trade me. The thought made my chest ache. Baseball season was long, so if we lived states apart, we’d get two months a year together. What we had might be new, but I already knew that wouldn’t be enough for me.

How hard could it be to keep this hidden for a little longer? If we made it through the season, we could go from there. It would give us time to settle into the relationship before making any big decisions. My contract would be up at the end of the year, so I might be a free agent anyway. Then it wouldn’t matter. I could try to get to New York or Buffalo, somewhere not too far. Maybe it wasn’t worth the stress now. We’d just have to keep our distance when we were at work.

My blood pressure spiked when Bosco stopped and leaned over the seat directly in front of her. He smirked and then said something that caused her to chuckle. Irritation flooded me. What the fuck was he doing making her laugh? The guy was a flirt. With his naturally highlighted hair and dimpled smile, he was always getting the girls, but I didn’t remember him flirting with Aurora specifically before now. I gritted my teeth when he leaned farther into her space, and when she ran a hand along the side of his neck, it took everything in me to stay where I was instead of storming over there and throwing him to the floor.

What the hell?

I locked my jaw and gripped my armrests as Bosco finally headed toward me.

“Why were you talking to Aurora?” I stood in the aisle, stopping him before he could sit.

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